Central Connecticut vs. St. Francis And The State College Football Capsules

Mike Anthony, manthony@courant.com

Two of the more exciting players in the Northeast Conference will be at Arute Field Saturday afternoon as Central Connecticut hosts St. Francis (Pa.) in the NEC opener for both teams.Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.Senior Kyle Harbridge of St. Francis and junior Rob Hollomon of Central are the top ball carriers in the conference. Harbridge actually leads all of FCS at 188.2 rushing yards per game, well ahead of Hollomon's 108.2. But the difference in all-purpose yardage -- Harbridge's 236.2 to Hollomon's 208.6 -- is much closer. Hollomon leads the NEC with a kickoff return average of 34.7 yards. Moses Webb of Sacred Heart is second at 25.8.Central (1-4) is coming off a 42-7 loss at Rhode Island and has now allowed 200 points, an average of 40 a game. Only Wagner (42.6 a game) allows more among NEC teams.St. Francis (1-3) is coming off a 38-20 home loss to Fordham.Central leads the all-time series 17-3 (6-1 under coach Jeff McInerney). The Blue Devils have rushed for 100-plus yards in 28 consecutive games.A look at the rest of the college football games involving state teams … Trinity (2-0) vs. Hamilton (0-2), 1 p.m.: Trinity has won 11 in a row overall and 48 in a row at home, last losing in 2001. Hamilton has been blown out in two games, both at home -- 23-7 to Amherst and 35-6 to Wesleyan. Trinity leads the all-time series 33-11-1, winning 53-14 last season on the road. Trinity is coming off a 20-13 home victory over Williams that took two fourth quarter touchdown receptions by senior A.J. Jones. Senior linebacker Michael Weatherby had 11 tackles, three for loss, and a forced fumble. Trinity is ranked No. 1 in the New England Division III coaches poll. Trinity is likely to stick with sophomore Henry Foye for most of the reps at quarterback, with freshman Sonny Puzzo also taking some snaps.Wesleyan (2-0) vs. Colby (1-1), 1 p.m.: Junior quarterback Jesse Warren is second in Division III with a 240.9 passing efficiency rating, trailing only Michael Mees of Heidelberg (254.5). Freshman running back Lou Stevens was the latest Wesleyan ball carrier to break through last week with 85 yards on 12 carries in a 35-6 victory at Hamilton. Junior LaDarius Drew is averaging 107.5 yards a game, junior Kyle Gibson 90 and Stevens 62. The Cardinals opened with a 52-9 victory over Tufts and have outscored their first two opponents by a combined 87-15. The Cardinals are first in the NESCAC in virtually every major offensive statistic and are out-gaining opponents by an average yardage of 502-275.5. Colby opened with a 31-8 victory over Williams and is coming off a 27-10 loss at Middlebury. Sacred Heart (5-0) vs. Wagner (1-4), 1 p.m.: This is the Northeast Conference opener for Sacred Heart, which is off to its best start since 6-0 in 2008, when they finished 8-3. The Pioneers, whose only NEC title came with in 2001, are coming off a 16-0 victory at Bucknell, its second victory over a team from the Patriot League this season. Wagner won last season's matchup, 12-3. Wagner has lost four in a row, including its NEC opener last week to Bryant. Sacred Heart forced six turnovers last week against Bucknell and leads the nation with a plus-14 turnover ratio. It was minus-3 last season. Wagner, last season's NEC champion, leads the all-time series 8-7. Sacred Heart leads the NEC at 40.4 points scored per game, as well as points allowed per game (16.6).Western Connecticut (2-1) at Bridgewater State (3-1), 1 p.m.: Western is coming off a 14-12 loss to Framingham State in its home opener. Bridgewater State is 2-0 in MASCAC play (tied for first place with Framingham). Western senior running back Octavias McKoy is averaging 113.3 rushing yards per game and 7.4 yards per carry. The Colonials have outscored opponents 91-24, by an average score of 30.3-8. Bridgewater State is coming off a 30-20 victory over Fitchburg State and has won three in a row since an opening loss at Salve Regina. Coast Guard (1-3) vs. Western New England (1-2), 1:30 p.m.: The possibility of this game being canceled existed due to the government shutdown. Coast Guard is coming off its first victory of the season, 37-20 over Nichols in the New England Football Conference opener. Freshman quarterback Derek Victory, making his first start, threw for two touchdowns and 261 yards, and sophomore safety Joe Rizzardi had two interceptions and returned both for touchdowns. Coast Guard coach Bill George has 47 career victories, one shy of equaling John Merriman's program-record 48. This is the first meeting between the teams. Western New England is the top scoring team in the NEFC, averaging 35.3 points. Coast Guard is 10-for-10 in red zone scoring opportunities (five touchdowns, five field goals).Yale (2-0) at Cal Poly (2-2), 5 p.m.: This is the first meeting between teams from the Ivy League and the Big Sky Conference. Yale has played in California just twice, both against San Diego (a win in 1998, a loss in 2006). Junior receiver Deon Randall is coming off a career day in Yale's victory over Cornell last week in the Ivy opener. He had 11 catches for 148 yards and three touchdowns, and also three carries for 18 yards and another touchdown, in the Bulldogs' 38-23 victory. Senior quarterback Henry Furman passed for 353 yards and three touchdowns and Yale finished with 566 yards on offense. Cal Poly's two losses came to BCS teams (Fresno State and Colorado State) and the Mustangs are ranked No. 18 in the FCS coaches poll.